What They Say
Plastic Logic said that it has supplied a foldable E Ink-based display that is built into the sleeve of a professional sailing racing jacket. The display connects wirelessly to show data from B&G or Raymarine sailing instruments.
There’s a brief video here.
István Papp of 878 said
“We’ve had fantastic feedback on the jackets, five sailing teams globally have shown interest in using the smart jacket. We definitely see further potential for this technology in other apparel applications, including cycling and other sports.”
What We Think
I contacted a friend who’s a keen sailor. He said:
“Wow, going straight into one of the toughest markets out there – salt water, rough treatment, intense sunshine. Raymarine have experienced corrosion of display touch surfaces. Even Goretex took another 20 years to catch on in sailing compared to other outdoors markets due to salt crystal damage to the membrane.”
He also pointed out that for smaller yacht racing this level of information would be illegal. (BR)
